Tagged | seals

In this week’s Fish Talk in the News, residents claim ownership on Spinney Creek in attempt to stop aquaculture expansion; startling new research finds large buildup of heat in the oceans; researchers try to design a lifejacket for lobstermen; scientists address myths and misinformation about seals; a day-long dialogue between fishing and wind industries nets some progress; and WCAI reports on the importance of Atlantic salmon in New England. … More Info »

In this week’s Fish Talk in the News, U.S. Border Patrol rankles Canadian fishermen; New England Senators support lobster industry facing Chinese tariffs; Maine Center for Coastal Fisheries to lead groundbreaking research effort; local lobsterman to test ropeless buoy equipment; seals return to local waters; and Maine lobster industry braces for looming bait shortage. … More Info »

In this edition of Fish Talk in the News, NEFMC’s April Council meeting is next week; NOAA announces increases to groundfish common pool possession and trip limits; a SMAST scallop researcher is denied federal funding; an op-ed says small-boat fishermen seek to protect the fishery; an oyster hatchery sows pearls of wisdom on climate change; a Gloucester photojournalist publishes a coffee-table book; and a video shows a horde of seals off Chatham. … More Info »

In this week’s Fish Talk in the News, a released revised draft of the Magnuson-Stevens reauthorization bill could award domestic fisheries the right to the label “sustainable”, as well as provide Rhode Island with voting representation on the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council; an analysis of bird diets and population trends suggests trouble for marine birds dependent on forage fish; Cape Cod lobstermen say their safety is put on the line with new federal regulations to protect right whales; Cape Cod fishermen feel increasing pressure from seal populations on fish stocks; in an interview with the Boston Globe, Paul Greenberg examines why the United States imports 90 percent of its seafood; price shocks occur in the clam market as a result of rain closures in Maine. … More Info »

In this week’s Fish Talk in the News, the Commerce Department appoints new Fishery Management Council members; MAFMC imposes the first ever federal catch limits on shad and river herring; John Tierney’s Farm Bill amendment for fisheries loans fails; high landings of Canadian lobster push down prices; the Globe highlights the plight of fishermen and GMRI releases a new report on cod; scientists tag gray seals; TNC collaborates with New Hampshire fishermen to buy groundfish permits; Pew’s John Crawford responds to the Gloucester Daily Times; NMFS shuts down longlining for large bluefin for the rest of the year. … More Info »

Congress passed the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA) in 1972, forty years ago. Intended to slow the precipitous decline of marine mammal populations due to human activities, the act prohibited the killing, harassment, or excessive disturbance of marine mammals in United States waters. For seals in New England—mainly harbor seals and gray seals—the MMPA’s protections effected a massive boom in population. … More Info »